United States Customs District of New Bedford

In 1789, New Bedford was chosen to be the administrative center of the Tenth U.S. Customs District. Colonel Edward Pope was chosen to be the district's first collector. The district consisted of the ports of New Bedford, Fairhaven, Rochester, Wareham, Westport, and Dartmouth. By 1825, New Bedford had surpassed Nantucket as the capital of the whaling industry, a distinction it would hold for much of the nineteenth century. New Bedford's Customhouse was completed in 1836 at a cost of $32,000. Today, the New Bedford office covers an area stretching from Plymouth in the north to Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket in the south and west to east from Fall River, Massachusetts to Provincetown, Massachusetts. This area includes all of Cape Cod. The office handles duty collection and customs clearances for foreign cargo ships, cruise ships, private vessels, and airplanes that arrive into the port of entry. ==Collector==

The position of collector was appointed by the President, subject to confirmation by the Senate. From 1820 onward, collectors were limited to four-year commissions, at the end of which they needed to be reappointed by the President. They could also be removed from office at any time at the pleasure of the President. == References ==